Bulls-Cavaliers Preview

By JORDAN GARRETSONPosted Nov 30 2013 12:16AM

The Chicago Bulls appear to have regrouped after absorbing the shock of losing Derrick Rose again.

With a struggling offense, the Cleveland Cavaliers may not prove to be much of a challenge Saturday night as Chicago closes its six-game road trip.

The Bulls (7-7) ended a four-game skid with Friday's 99-79 win at Detroit, its third game without Rose after he was lost for the season due to a torn meniscus suffered in last Friday's loss at Portland.

They were blasted for a 39-point defeat against the Los Angeles Clippers in the next game, then took an overtime loss against league-worst Utah on Monday despite holding the Jazz to 38.8 percent shooting.

Chicago's defense put the clamps down on the Pistons in the second half, giving up just 26 points on 27.8 percent shooting after letting them hit 58.5 percent of their shots in the first 24 minutes.

"They made some shots in the first half, but I liked the way we were playing offensively," coach Tom Thibodeau said. "In the second half, we got our defensive intensity going."

Ninety-nine points was seemingly an offensive explosion for a club that had scored 87 or fewer in four of its last five games. Luol Deng continued to assert himself as the Bulls' top scorer, pouring in a season-high 27 points. He's averaging 24.3 and shooting 52.2 percent in the three games without Rose after averaging 15.7 points on 40.8 percent shooting in his previous 11 contests.

"Luol was off the charts the whole game," Thibodeau told the team's official website. "You can talk about how important he is to the team and what a good player he is. He's so strong in both areas of the game. He's a great offensive and defensive player. Luol is a big shot maker late. We know we have a guy who we can go to."

Deng is shooting 51.4 percent from 3-point range over his last 11 matchups with Cleveland, though he was 3 of 12 form the floor overall in Chicago's 96-81 home win on Nov. 11, the Bulls' 12th victory in 13 meetings. Chicago scored 29 points off 18 Cleveland turnovers.

The Cavaliers (4-12) dropped their fifth straight game Friday with a 103-88 loss at Boston. Playing Chicago likely wont cure Cleveland's offensive lull, as the team is averaging 90.7 points through a 1-8 stretch, including four games with 86 points or fewer.

The Cavaliers managed just 10 points in Friday's first quarter and shot 37.2 percent for the game.

"They threw the first punch tonight and I feel like we laid down. ... They controlled the whole game," said Dion Waiters, who scored 21 points. "We've got to be men. We've got to grow up. We can't just turn it around and think it's going to be easy. This is a man's league, so at the end of the day we've got to bring it."

Kyrie Irving had another inefficient performance, scoring 17 on 7-of-16 shooting with four turnovers compared to three assists. He's shooting 39.2 percent over his last four contests, including 1 of 16 from 3-point range. Irving has also struggled against Chicago, hitting just 35.7 percent of his field goals in four meetings. He was 5 of 19 for 16 points in the teams' earlier meeting.

Copyright 2013 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Cavs hold on to beat Bulls 97-93

Posted Nov 30 2013 11:48PM

CLEVELAND (AP) The Cleveland Cavaliers have been waiting for Andrew Bynum to have a breakout performance.

The 7-footer came through in a 97-93 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night.

Bynum made the go-ahead basket with 3:35 left and had his best all-around game of the season with 20 points, five blocked shots and 10 rebounds in 30 minutes.

"It felt good," Bynum said. "I won't lie to you."

Bynum said earlier in the season he was contemplating retirement as he attempts a comeback from surgery on both knees. The injuries sidelined him for all of last season in Philadelphia and he admitted he was only a shell of himself on the court.

"Tonight we saw a little bit of what Andrew is capable of bringing to the table," Cavaliers coach Mike Brown said.

Bynum hopes Saturday's performance is a sign of something positive for himself and the team.

"I was able to have a little more bounce, a little more jumping ability," he said. "I hope my knees feel good after this."

Bynum and Dion Waiters each scored 20 points, and the Cavaliers held off a late rally by Chicago. Cleveland, which had lost five straight and eight of nine, built a 12-point lead in fourth quarter, but the Bulls rallied for an 88-87 edge on Tony Snell's basket with 3:59 remaining.

Bynum, who was 8 of 14 from the field, hit a 5-footer to put Cleveland ahead for good and Kyrie Irving scored after stealing the ball from Kirk Hinrich. Waiters converted another turnover into a layup to put the Cavaliers ahead 93-88 with 2:09 to play.

Waiters scored again to give Cleveland a seven-point lead, but Luol Deng's 3-pointer cut the lead to 95-91.

Carlos Boozer's basket with 40 seconds left trimmed it to 95-93. Following a miss by Bynum, the Bulls called timeout with 17 seconds remaining. Deng drove to the basket but his shot rolled off the rim and the Bulls missed three tip-in attempts.

Tristan Thompson grabbed the rebound and made two free throws with 9 seconds remaining sealed the win.

Irving, who added 19 points for Cleveland, knows how important Bynum can be to the team.

"When you have someone you can throw it down to, you know he can get his shot when he wants," Irving said. "He draws so much attention. It opens up a lot of opportunities for all of us."

Deng scored 27 points for the Bulls, who finished 1-5 on their road trip in which they lost point guard Derrick Rose for the season with a knee injury.

"This was the end of a long trip," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. "We've got to gather ourselves quickly now because we don't have much time before we play again."

The Bulls played their fourth game without Rose, who had surgery for a torn meniscus in his right knee last week after getting hurt Nov. 22 in Portland.

Chicago also was blown out by 39 points by the Los Angeles Clippers and lost in overtime to Utah during the trip. The Bulls ended a four-game losing streak with Friday's 99-79 win at Detroit.

"We learned a lot on the road, but we've got to do better," said forward Taj Gibson. "Just because we're coming home doesn't mean anything. Teams tend to get a chip on their shoulder when they come into Chicago, so we have to be ready."

Cleveland led by five points at halftime, but started the third period with a 15-5 run to lead 71-56 midway through the quarter.

Chicago had won 12 of its last 13 games against Cleveland, including a 96-81 home victory on Nov. 11, but the Cavaliers scored the game's first seven points, forcing Thibodeau to use a 20-second timeout at the 10:38 mark. The Cavaliers scored 27 points and were 11 of 18 from the field in the first quarter after being held to 10 points in the opening period Friday in a 103-86 loss at Boston.

Snell and Gibson each scored 18 points for Chicago.

NOTES: Bynum blocked consecutive shots on the same possession by Joakim Noah in the first quarter. ... Thibodeau was given a technical foul by official Nick Buchert in the second quarter. ... Cavaliers G C.J. Miles, who missed four games with a pulled right calf, returned to Cleveland's starting lineup and scored six points. ... Cleveland F Earl Clark (flu) was inactive. ... Bulls G Jimmy Butler (right toe) is traveling with the team, but there's no timetable for his return. ... Chicago plays its first home game since Nov. 18 on Monday against New Orleans, the first of four straight games at the United Center. ... The Cavaliers don't play again until Wednesday when Denver visits.

Copyright 2013 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Notebook: Cavs 97, Bulls 93

THE FACT: Andrew Bynum posted his first double-double since April 15, 2012 in leading the Cavaliers past the Bulls.

THE LEAD: Cleveland's Bynum and shooting guard Dion Waiters each scored 20 points as the Cavaliers snapped their five-game losing streak with a 97-93 win over the Chicago Bulls Saturday night. All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving added 19 points and six assists for the Cavaliers (5-12), while power forward Tristan Thompson had 14 points and a game-high 14 rebounds.

QUOTABLE: "This felt good. I'm not going to lie to you. It was actually good to jump and see that it wasn't too bad on the landing. But more than anything, this game was about getting out on the floor and getting my touch back."

-- Cavaliers center Andrew Bynum

THE STAT: Bynum set season highs in points (20), rebounds (10), blocked shots (5), and minutes (30) in dominating the paint for extended stretches. It was his 36th career 20/10 game and his 120th double-double in the NBA. Bynum made a short jumper with 3:35 left, giving the Cavaliers the lead for good at 89-88. The 7-footer sat out all of last season after undergoing surgery on both knees.

TURNING POINT: With the Cavaliers holding a 95-93 advantage with 17.4 seconds left, the Bulls put up four shots in the paint in rapid-fire fashion, but missed them all.

QUOTABLE II: "Everybody saw a little bit of what Andrew [Bynum] is capable of bringing to the table for us. He was big for us offensively, he was big for us on the glass, and I thought he was big for us protecting the rim."

-- Cavaliers coach Mike Brown

HOT: Bynum shot 8-for-14 from the field and 4-for-4 from the line, raising his season free-throw percentage to .913. ... Waiters scored 13 points before he missed a shot, finishing the night 8-for-10 on field goal attempts. ... Irving did not commit a turnover in 39 minutes. ... Bulls power forward Taj Gibson scored 18 points in 24 minutes off the bench, including nine points in the fourth quarter. ... Chicago's Joakim Noah had eight rebounds and seven assists.

NOT: The Bulls completed their six-game circus road trip with a 1-5 record. ... Noah and Carlos Boozer combined to miss 16 of their 23 shots. ... Chicago point guard Kirk Hinrich had two assists and five fouls. ... The Cavaliers are 2-8 since Nov. 11. ... Cleveland rookie power forward Anthony Bennett airballed a perimeter jumper and missed a 3-pointer. The No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft did convert on a dunk, upping his pro field goal percentage to .224 on 11-for-49 shots.

QUOTABLE III: "Bynum is really strong, but I've got to do a better job defensively, holding the paint down. They scored a lot of easy baskets down low, and that starts with me. I have to be better than I was tonight."

-- Bulls center Joakim Noah

GOOD MOVE: Cavaliers shooting guard C.J. Miles (right calf strain) returned from a four-game absence after Brown had already ruled him out for the contest. The eight-year veteran convinced Cleveland's trainers to allow him to play, then replaced Russian rookie Sergey Karasev in the starting lineup. Miles gutted out 16 minutes and scored six points while providing a calming influence at the two-guard spot. "When C.J. is healthy, he's going to be in there," Brown said.

BAD MOVE: Instead of jumping on the struggling Cavaliers, Chicago allowed them to score the first nine points of the game. Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau used his first timeout 82 seconds in, then watched his squad start the third quarter equally flat. Cleveland came out of intermission with a 15-5 run to take its largest lead at 71-56 on a bank shot by Irving. "The first six minutes of the game and the first six minutes of the third were the big things tonight," Thibodeau said.

NOTABLE: Chicago had won its previous six games in Cleveland. ... Bulls shooting guard Jimmy Butler (right big toe sprain) remain out, but Butler is traveling with the team and continuing to rehabilitate his injury. ... Cavaliers small forward Earl Clark (flu) was a late scratch, joining rookie small forward Carrick Felix on the inactive list. ... WWE wrestler Nick "Dolph Ziggler" Nemeth sat courtside.